In grocery stores and other retail outlets where goods are received in cardboard cartons, it is necessary to open the cartons for display of the contents. Such cartons usually are glued shut thereby making it necessary to cut through the lid to permit removal of the goods. Usually such goods comprise canned goods or boxes of food such as cereals, sugar, macaroni, et cetera.
In opening the cardboard cartons, it is quite easy to cause a cutting blade to cut through the cardboard and extend into the interior of the box. When this occurs, there will result damage to the contents of the box such as the cutting open of cereal boxes, sugar boxes or other such foodstuffs so that the damaged merchandise must either be thrown away or is greatly reduced in value.
One other method of displaying boxed merchandise is what is referred to as tray packing. In this method a portion of one side of the cardboard box is removed as well as the top with the box and contents both being set on the shelf for display. Frequently canned soups are displayed in this manner because it does not require removal of the individual cans from the cardboard carton. However such cutting of the carton also requires that the cut not only be accurate in depth but also that it be made some distance from the box edge thereby requiring a different manner of cutting than if just the top is to be removed.
It is the purpose of the subject invention to provide an effective means for cutting open cardboard cartons in a manner to minimize or prevent damage to the contents of the carton.